1. Technical Field
The present invention generally relates to vehicles and an apparatus for increasing driver and passenger convenience within the vehicle. More specifically, the present invention relates to a cup holder which can accommodate many articles in addition to typical beverage containers.
2. Discussion
With the ever-increasing time demands placed on individuals lives, people are continually looking for ways to maximize their time. People tend to do more and more activities on the go. For some people, this means living essentially in their vehicles. Some people communicate to others while in their car and others eat meals in their car. These trends are most likely accountable for the proliferation of cellular phones and drive through food and beverage services.
In order to accommodate the needs of their customers, automobile manufacturers typically include various storage bins and some type of cup holder in every vehicle. In recent years, the cup holder has become an increasingly important feature in all motor vehicles.
The design of cup holders has changed drastically over the years. Initial cup holders were sized to hold twelve-ounce cans and could not accommodate size variation. More recently, automotive manufacturers have introduced cup holders with clamping mechanisms to accommodate a wide variety of beverage container sizes and shapes.
A popular design for a dual cup holder is depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,897, issued Feb. 28, 1989, assigned to Center-Tech Incorporated. The cup holder illustrated in the drawings of this patent includes two cylindrical receptacles connected by a channel at the centers thereof. This design provides for a coffee mug type container with a handle to be placed in one of the receptacles. This popular design had been improved upon in recent years. Commonly assigned U.S. Ser. No. 08/997,641, filed Dec. 23, 1997 illustrates a three-receptacle design connected by channels so that two mugs and a third traditional beverage container may be accommodated contemporaneously. This application illustrates the continued need to improve upon yesterday's cup holders.
Many vehicle owners use their cup holders differently. Some use the cup holders to hold beverage containers and nothing else. Others use the cup holders to store coins or other small objects. Others use them to hold cellular phone and even others use them to hold letters, pencils, and many other similar objects.
There is, therefore, a need to provide an apparatus for a motor vehicle that can effectively hold beverage containers as well as other commonly used objects at the same time. It is conceded that many, if not all, cupholders can hold other objects instead of beverage containers, however, most lack the ability to hold other objects contemporaneously with beverage containers. For example, it can be seen from U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,897 that letters could not be held in a longitudinal manner by the cup holder at the time as a beverage container without deforming the letters. It can also be appreciated that by placing a pencil or other elongated object in the channel interconnecting the two receptacles will compromise the apparatus' ability to effectively hold a beverage container.